The Beach Patrol is on duty beginning Memorial Day weekend each summer (Saturday, Sunday & Monday) and then two more weekends thereafter, and every day through Labor Day and then two weekends after Labor Day.

A voluntary townwide curbside recycling program through DSWA has been instituted beginning in 2008. Property owners may sign up on the town Web site or at town hall. Pick-ups are on Fridays, weekly from May to September and bi-weekly during the other months. The Fenwick Island Lions Club also collects aluminum cans in a bin behind town hall.

Officials from area coastal towns met recently under the auspices of the Association of Coastal Towns (ACT), focused primarily on the issue of dredging in the inland bays, Bethany Beach Mayor Jack Gordon noted at the Bethany town council’s Nov. 17 meeting.

The 10th Annual Fenwick Island Turkey Trot will be held on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, Nov. 23, at 8 a.m. The untimed 2.2-mile fun-run/walk starts oceanside on Lewes Street in Fenwick Island, and goes south to the Maryland state line and back.

If a coastal storm were to hit Fenwick Island, the town council wants to have to have some financial power ready to go.

The Fenwick Island Town Council recently proposed changing the town charter to increase their borrowing limits. Currently, Charter Section 34 permits the Town to borrow up to $500,000 in one year for current expenses — an amount that hasn’t changed since 1965.

Fenwick Island businesses are aiming to make Friday a big shopping night. The local businesses have followed in the footsteps of other towns in the region by starting the new Fenwick First Fridays events, continuing Nov. 3 and Dec. 1.

Police and government leaders throughout the area are trying to keep pedestrians from ending up on the wrong side of a car accident, and an incident this week underscored the need for the problem to be addressed.

Gov. John Carney, U.S Sens. Tom Carper and Chris Coons, and U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (all D-Del.) on Monday announced that the next steps are under way in the long-awaited beach replenishment projects in Bethany Beach, South Bethany and Fenwick Island.

Gov. John Carney, U.S Sens. Tom Carper and Chris Coons, and U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (all D-Del.) on Monday announced that the next steps are under way in the long-awaited beach replenishment projects in Bethany Beach, South Bethany and Fenwick Island.

Two-lane highways are under volume pressure as more houses and vehicles bring people to coastal Delaware. There will be a public meeting to discuss traffic conditions along Route 54 (Lighthouse Road) on Tuesday, Sept. 19, at 12:30 p.m. at the Roxana Volunteer Fire Company’s fire hall.

Fenwick Islanders beg for bay dredging

Make some noise — at the end of the day, if people want to fight for state funding, they may need to get organized and start contacting their legislators. That includes Fenwick Island’s desire for better-maintained waterways.

Pizzazz features unique décor and gifts in Fenwick

Coastal Point • Tyler Valliant: Pizzazz by the Bay owner Victoria Thanner in her Fenwick Island shop.This tiny shop in Fenwick Island is living up to its name. Pizzazz by the Bay isn’t trying to be the ordinary gift shop. Visitors and locals are coming there to find eclectic gifts and home décor by local artists.

Never behind the counter for very long, Victoria Thanner greets every customer with a smile. She loves being right there, helping them find the perfect item, or picturing it in their home.

With so many people still building and renovating in coastal Delaware, “I want to do something different … showcase local artists and pieces,” Thanner said. “People are looking for that ‘wow’ piece.”

Some of the more striking sculptures begin with driftwood: a gentle curving sailboat, a rough sea turtle and tall lamps strung with Edison bulbs and ship’s rope.

The Fenwick Island Town Council has canceled its Aug. 25 public hearing and the council’s final vote on voter qualifications. In fact, the primary sponsor, Councilwoman Julie Lee, said she has decided to hit “pause” altogether on the proposed charter amendment. She said she may move to rescind the first reading from July.

After two years of debating voter qualifications, Fenwick Island officials finally compromised on new guidelines that could restore votes to previous voters, without heavily diluting residents’ votes. But the town solicitor has said the latest draft still leaves Fenwick open to potential problems in town elections.

The Town of Fenwick Island had dreams of new sidewalks to safely connect the town. Over the past decade, they added a few sidewalks, but in many places, pedestrians must still tiptoe around traffic or through parking lots.

On July 7, most of the town council and a few others gathered to broach the topic again, under the new Pedestrian Safety & Sidewalk Committee.

Coastal Point • Tyler Valliant: Mama’s Black Sheep jams out on stage during the first Locals event at the Freeman Stage at Bayside.For the fifth season, the Freeman Stage at Bayside in Selbyville is hosting its Locals under the Lights performances, so that local up-and-coming artists have the opportunity to further their musical interests while audience members are able to appreciate the local talent.

This summer’s second Locals under the Lights will take place Thursday, Aug. 10.

“We want to help not only expose a variety of art media to people, but we want to be able to let people express their love for music and performing as well,” said Alyson Cunningham, communications and public relations manager for the Freeman Stage.

From 7 to 9 p.m. on Aug. 10, people of all ages are being invited to listen to vocal and instrumental performances from 5th Avenue, Cologne, Hedera SOJO, Bad Avenue Band and Jacob Osias, while sitting on the lawn in front of the stage.

Coastal Point • File Photo: The Fenwick Island Lighthouse’s keeper’s house, on the left, will become a public historical site, if state historians can get their plans, and finances, approved.In days gone by, sailors looked for the beacon on dark nights. The Fenwick Island Lighthouse warned ships away from the shallows that could trap or shred a boat to bits, depending on the weather. And lighthouse staff were so dedicated to their jobs that they lived next door.

Today, the State of Delaware wants to show people a slice of that life by renovating the keeper’s house into a public historical site.

Delaware has long owned the lighthouse and more recently acquired the keeper’s house, just to the west, said Tim Slavin, director of Delaware’s Division of Historical & Cultural Affairs.

“We are looking at creating that keeper’s house into a kind of community site and interpretive center for lectures or gatherings of any kind,” Slavin said. “We’re also going to do a little better job of marrying the two parcels together, … create a campus there, so when people visit, it’s more than just two parcels.”

Residents living in and around West Fenwick can learn about their risk for cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, diabetes and other chronic, serious conditions with screenings by Life Line Screening. The Roxana Volunteer Fire Company will host the event on Aug. 16, at 35943 Zion Church Road, near Frankford.